1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a self-adjusting ball bearing cage of the type comprising a ring having cavities distributed circumferentially along a face of the ring, the cavities forming spherical housings. The housings are open on a face of the ring and are extended in the axial direction from that face of the ring by ball holding tabs adjacent to each housing. The invention relates more particularly to such a cage formed of locally deformable plastic material.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,019,790 describes a cage in which the flexibility of the holding tabs facilitates the introduction of the balls into their housings.
French Publication FR-A-2507715 describes a cage in which a barrier is placed between the adjacent housings and extends in the axial direction from the same face of the ring as do the adjacent flexible tabs. This arrangement facilitates the adjustment of the cage relative to the balls and in particular avoids the crushing of the tabs.
During the operation of the bearing, the stresses exerted by the balls on the cage are able to cause, in some cases, the ejection of the balls from the cage as a result of exaggerated flexure of the tabs or their breaking, particularly when the material of the cage contains a filler (e.g., glass fiber) intended to improve its physical and mechanical characteristics (e.g., heat resistance, dimensional stability).